State of Project Minima: Summer of Year 2

Starting from scratch with Year 2, I've completed a total of 14 refashions during this first quarter of summer.    

~ painting by Marieloes Reek ~

~I notice a new trend with my posts where I'm including more of my everyday life, thoughts and opinions.  Like in the posts: Memory Lane, DIY Shelving, I Don't Donate/Thrift, Graceland Sketch Club, and giving out my art website.

~I bought something, the first thing in 1 year & 3 months:  a pair of shoes!  Sandals to be exact, on sale at Marshall's - for my 60th b'day.

~Then I got pneumonia.

~I've often been a nervous wreck about health insurance and work.  The Reader has been decimated and sold to The Sun Times and my true

Linens and Things

Dug into my retired bedding for this one. 

~ painting by Antonio Macedo ~

The pillow cases had beautiful lace trim about 4 inches wide.  Made from 100% cotton, they had been laundered many, many times and were so soft.  

Referring to my Japanese Stylish Dress Book, I chose pattern X to create a top.  I must say, even though it's

T-Shirt Tunic Mod

I've been working on a bunch of losing propositions lately.  ah well.  This is one I can lounge around in anyway.

Here we are...

It's a modification from a tunic top I saw on Refashion Co-op by Love Flow Creations.  When I tried it out in the original format it was gigantic on me (and I'm not a little person by any means).  So I reconfigured a smaller version out of old t-shirts I didn't much care for - just to see what would happen.  I basically used half the amount of t-shirts as recommended and my tunic was still quite huge.  Maybe if I used really small ones, it would work out better.  We'll see, another time.

You'll be able to see it's kind of kimono-esque in shape, if you check out the Clothes for Summer page.  It's actually made from 2 shirts: 1 faded navy and 1 deep purple.  The short sleeves I removed have been turned into patch pockets.

Three's a Charm

It's that time of the month again Ladies...and luckily for us it happens twice a month:  Style Imitates Art!  So without further ado, may I present to you, today's work of inspiration:

Two Girls in Bed by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

To see what I did (heh, heh, heh) stay tuned after the jump...

Not Just Another Award

Melanie of Bag and A Beret just gave me a Lobster?!  No wait, it's a Liebster Award.  Well, thank you.  Thank you very much.  ahem.  I see, apparently Liebster is a German word meaning sweetest, kindest, nicest, dearest, beloved, lovely, pleasant, valued, cute, endearing and welcome or so someone says.  I must say I am deeply honored to receive this award from a liebster, sexy, and wicked-sick style icon as is Ms. Melanie.

Melanie presenting my Liebster!

And hereafter it becomes a bit like a chain letter...so now I must behave appropriate to my newly acquired status and do the following:

Dot, Dot, Dot...

 ~ Lichtenstein painting and moi ~

Yes, that's me merging into the dots of a Lichtenstein landscape painting, one of 160 pieces in a retrospective now showing at the Art Institute of Chicago.  Don't you think we're both working the Japanese theme in a satisfying way?  yeah.

I'm wearing a kimono dress made from my fabric stash using the I Am Cute Dresses

Tripping Down Memory Lane

In my recent spate of organizing, I came upon some old photo/ scrapbooks.  This completely derailed whatever task I had going, of course.  But it was so cool.  The first things I found was a photo of me wearing that dress bought in Egypt and worn on a cruise down the Nile some 30 years ago.

See, I look exactly the same then as my recently
 posted "Starry Night with Van Gogh" seen here

Now the other totally awesome thing I had was an old scrapbook picked up at an estate sale in Saugatuck, Michigan for 50 cents.  I remember feeling so honored

Whole Lot of Orange Going On

Style Imitates Art's inspiration is brought to you today by Vivienne of Thrifted Shift:

~ Georgia O'Keeffe, From the Plains II ~

Here's what I came up with after the break...

Hanging Up Your Clothes - DIY

Jean (of Dross into Gold) mentioned something about getting a spare bedroom/ dressing room into shape that didn't have enough closet space...
 

~ photograph by Aline Smithson ~

Since I was still in an organizing mood, I tidied mine up a bit and shot some pictures.  My true love and I had made a wooden shelving device for clothes and shoes several years ago to accommodate a spare room in our house.  It was inexpensive and easy to make.  And it's sectional so when we decided to relocated it to a different spare room, there was no problem fitting it in.

Here's some pictures...

I Don't Donate and I Don't Thrift

~ painting by Alice Neel ~

...anymore.  Let me show you why.  I spent today cleaning up and sorting through my fabric stash, et. al.  It felt very virtuous.  So I took some pictures to remind myself it can be done or rather, that I can do it.  Wanna see?  I can get pretty obessive with my organizational skills...Okay, here they come after the break.

L'Orange du Jour

The last few days I've been working on refashioning several items that all have something in common.  If you haven't guessed by now, they're all the color orange!

~ painting by Robert Andersen ~

And why might that be...?  I mean, besides orange being an awesome color.  Because Style Imitates Art demands it for Monday's inspirational painting.  (and no, it's not the picture on the left.) 

Anyway, that's the excuse I've used to take on the following pieces:

1) a made-from-scratch tunic top that I refashioned to fit earlier and then decided it needed more work;

2) a skirt refashioned from a long ago thrifted floral maxi dress that no longer fit; and

In and Out of Focus

...or Dry brushed?

Diffused glow?

That is the ?

I'm wearing the tunic top I refashioned to fit several weeks ago and carrying a clutch bag I made out of a Modern Painters magazine awhile back.  I was on quite a kick with those things.  You can see a bunch of them on my art website under Oddments, and then Accessories.  The capris, clogs and sunglasses are all very old and originally store bought.  

Check out the Modern Painters clutch after the jump:

On Site at Graceland

I'm posing...

Here I am at Chicago's famous Graceland Cemetery standing in front of one of the more unusual monuments that grace its grounds.  Our sketching club has resumed Saturday morning outings here when class is out for summer.  I swear the temp. is a good 10 degrees cooler, the setting is beautiful with a man made lake, island, old, old trees, and exquisite monuments.  Plus no one ever comes here.  It's always quiet and empty.  And right in the middle of the city, near my house, and you can park!!!

Meanwhile, I'm wearing my newly remodeled sandals I posted about yesterday.  And a top and capris that I originally made from scratch and then refashioned to fit.  (Click on the items to get to the particular post.)

To see the amazing mausoleum I'm standing in front of, continue after the jump...

2 Misses and a Wee Success

painting by Declan Boyle.

Those 2 pieces I've been laboring over are done and done, like in over and out.  Misfires, flops.  The yellow capri redo looks desperate at the point of no return and the linen shift has in fact turned homely.  Better they just be put to rest in the recycle one day pile.  Again.  Maybe.  Never.  Whatever. 

So I just decided to do something fun, easy, and sure to please - I painted my shoes!


Check them out after the break...